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Savage roo mauls Oz man

What's that Skippy? You're trying to drown my dog?

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An Oz man has taken a serious pasting at the hands of a "savage" kangaroo which was attempting to drown his dog, the Herald Sun reports.

Chris Rickard, 49, was walking on his property in Arthurs Creek, Victoria with his pet mutt Rocky when the pair woke the 'roo, which was having a kip in long grass next to his farm dam (water storage pond).

The animal jumped into the water, closely followed by Rocky. This turned out to be a canine miscalculation, because the marsupial "grabbed the dog with its front paws and held it under water for about 20 seconds" until Rickard waded in.

He recounted: "I thought I might take a hit or two dragging the dog out from under his grip, but I didn't expect him to actually attack me. I was stuck having to hold onto the dog with both hands because it was half drowned and I couldn't really see anything because the kangaroo just ripped into me."

By the time Rickard managed to beat off his assailant with a blow to the throat, he'd suffered "a deep gash across his abdomen as the kangaroo tried to disembowel him with its hind legs, as well as a deep gash across his forehead and further cuts and scratches across his chest".

He admitted the attack was "a shock at the start because it was a kangaroo, about 5ft high, they don't go around killing people", and concluded: "I don't think I'll ever be able to watch Skippy quite the same as I used to - it might bring back a couple of bad memories."

The Herald Sun has a snap of the mauled victim here. The dog is reportedly none the worse for his ordeal. ®